Release mechanism



rAma 29, 1941.` MEYER 2,240,192

RELEASE 111101111111511 'Filed-411519120. 1949 f INVENToR (kades Meyer B* @lfm ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 29, 1941 UNETED OFFICE RELEASE MECIIIANLlli/I` Charles Meyer, Yonkers, N. Y., assignor to Bartmann & Bixer Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York l1 Claims.

This invention relates to a release device, particularly of the type adapted to operatively actuate or disconnect an associated mechanism.

such as a brake or clutch arrangement.

In many types of manufacturing apparatus it frequently becomes necessary to cause an immediate stoppage of operation upon the occurrence of certainV events. For example, in an apparatus for controlling the flow of pliable material, such as is described in my patent application Serial N o.- 351,503, filed concurrently herewith, if a needle or bobbin thread of the sewing machine breaks, or the feed or puller rollers at the rear of the machine become disconnected, it is highly desirable that the ilow of the material to the sewing machine be discontinued instantly, so as to prevent a mutilation of the material bythe sewing machine, or other undesirable effects. To

discontinue the flow of the material it is essenc tial that the motor be disconnected from the actuating feed roller,` and this is most conveniently accomplished by the use of a declutching mechanism. It is within the contemplation of this invention to enable such a declutching step to be eifectuated in an emcient manner and witha minimum of delay.

Cognizance is taken of other attempts to ef fect declutching operations similar to that above referred to by means of variousv release mechanisms, but such devices frequently fail to operi ate particularly when the device is intended to be actuated by a small electrical impulse, or one of short duration. The actual force required to electa declutching operation is generally of considerable magnitude, and hence in most known devices the releasing or tripping mechanism is held in its locked or untripped position by an almost` equivalent force, so that in those instances where the period of electrical contact is relatively short, the resulting small electrical impulse frequently is insufficiently powerful for tripping the mechanism. It is one oi the main objectsof my invention to overcome this shortcoming which is inherent in many commercial structures of this category,-an objective which I accomplish by providing, in one form of my invention; a treadle maintained in its untripped or normal `condition by a very light spring action which will permit a very slight electrical 'nnpulse Voi"Y short duration to operatively trip the Other objects, features and advantages will appear from the drawing and the description hereinafter given. .i

Referring to the drawing,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a treadle form of my invention operatively associated with a clutch and motor.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary sectional plan view of the clutch and motor arrangement of Fig ure 1.

Figure 3 is a plan view of the treadle form of my invention shown in Figure 1, the device ceing in its depressed or untripped condition.

Figure 4 is a side elevation of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a side elevation of the invention of the device of Figure 3 shown in its tripped or released condition, and

Figure 6 is a wiring diagram of one form of electrical circuit operatively associated with my invention.

The form of my invention shown in the drawing is of the treadle type wherein the tripping orreleasing step can, if desired, be performed by a foot-depressing operation. The main lever I6 is pivotally mounted on the base II at bearings I2 thereof, the extreme forward end of the lever :containing a main treadle portion I3.

Suitably secured to main lever I6 in the region.

of portion I3 is the electro-mechanical oscillator I4. This oscillator is of the conventional type used as a door latch, operable by the closingo-f an electrical circuit, and its internal con.` struction is accordingly not illustrated inasmuch as it is well known in the art. Within its outer casing are electro-mechanical means 0D- erably associated with the reciprocating latch I5, suitable electric conductors lbeing attachable tothe terminals I6. In overlying engagement with the upper surface of latch member I5 is the overhanging lip I'I forming the upper terminal portion of the tripping lever I8. This lever extends upwardly from and is preferably integral with the shaft I9 rotatably mounted within bearings 20 of base 2|. The tripping treadle 22 is fixedly associated with shaft I9, the sleeve 23 thereof being secured to'this shaft by set screw at 24. The treadle 22 contains the arm 25 the terminal of which is attached to spring 25' which is anchored on base '2|. The arrangement is obviously such that the spring 25 normally urges arm 25 and consequently tripping lever I8 in a clockwise direction, yieldably holding the lip Il in overlying engagement with latch member I5, as clearly shown in Figure 4. l

Associated with the rear base II is the bearing 21 rotatably supporting the actuating lever 28. The free end 29 of lever 28 contains pin 39 to which one end of spring 3| is secured the other end of the spring being anchored to the base II at 32. Intermediate the pivotal connection at 21 and terminal 29 of lever 28 is the lug 33 having afxed thereto the pin 34 normally underlying the said. main lever I0.

It will be observed that in the normal untripped or locked condition of this device, the spring 3| extends in the general direction of actuating lever 28, and forms a very slight angle therewith at its connection at 30. It is thus apparent that when the parts are in this position, the spring 3| can exert only a very slight rotational effort upon actuating lever 28, in view of the fact that its moment arm is relatively small. And it should also be noted that the effort arm of the main lever I extending from pin 34 to pivotal mounting I2 is less than the resistance arm extending from lip I1 to the pivotal mounting |2,-thereby further reducing the eii'ective resistance against retraction of latch I5. Hence a very slight electrical impulse operatively transmitted to oscillator I4 will permit a retraction of the latch member I5, inasmuch as there is no force of any considerable magnitude holding said latch member into frictional engagement with lip I1. And inasmuch as the only element preventing a retraction of latch I5 is the said lip I1, it is evident that once the latch member |'5 is retracted out of engagement therewith, even a very slight pull exerted by spring 3| will cause a clockwise rotation of actuating lever 28. When this occurs, the pin 34 will obviously force the main lever I0 upwardly, causing it to rotate in a clockwise direction about pivotal mounting I2. And as the upward movement continues, the angle between spring 3| and actuating lever 28 increases, causing a corresponding increase in the moment arm between spring 3|' and lever 28. This obviously causes an increase in the effort exerted by pin 34 on main lever |0 as the clockwise rotation continues, to cause a declutching movement in the manner to be hereinafter set forth.

Should the operator desire at any time to trip the mechanism so as to cause an upward declutching movement of main lever l0, he can depress the pedal 22 against the action of spring 2G. 'I'his will cause a counter-clockwise rotation l of tripping lever I8 and a retraction of lip I1 from its engagement with latch I5, thereby permitting the main lever I0 to move upwardly under the influence of spring 3|, as aforesaid.

When the main lever |0 moves upwardly in the manner above set forth, it will force upwardly the clutch rod 36 which is pivotally attached to main lever I0 as shown. The upper portion of said rod is pivotally connected at 31 to clutch lever 38 preferably integral with sleeve 39 rotatably mounted over shaft 4B. Fixedly attached to one end of said shaft is the clutch plate 4|, the other end of the shaft having xedly attached thereto the pulley member 42 0perably rotatable by belt 43 connected -to some device not shown) intended to be operated by the motor 44. Operatively engageable with clutch plate 4| is clutch plate 45 fixedly secured to shaft 4G associated with motor 44. The said sleeve 39 is rotatably mounted within bearing member 41 attached to suitable framework 48. The sleeve contains an oblique slot 49 in engagement with a pin 50 affixed to said bearing member 41. Mounted over sleeve 39 and collar 5I is the helical spring 52 yieldably urging the clutch plate 4| in the direction of clutch plate 45.

Upon an upward operative movement of rod 36, it is apparent that clutch lever 38 will be correspondingly moved upwardly, causing a rotation of sleeve 39 within bearing 41. Such rotational movement will bring the wall of slot 39 into engagement with stationary pin 50, whereupon the sleeve 39 together with clutch lever 38 will move outwardly against the action of spring 53 anchored to the framework 48 and lever 38: This outward movement will force the pulley collar 54 and pulley member 42 outwardly, thereby causing a corresponding outward movement of shaft 4i! together with the clutch 4|. This will effect a disengagement of the clutch plates, whereupon the belting 43 will no longer be driven by the motor 44.

The description of the clutch operation hereinabove given merely indicates one manner in which the tripping of the release mechanism can be effective in causing a stoppage of an apparatus. And in the particular illustration hereinabove given, it will be noted that the rod 35 must be moved upwardly with a force of considerable magnitude in order to effectuate the declutching operation. Whenever this condition had to be met with known conventional structures, the releasable lever, equivalent to lever ID, was generally held down by a spring under consderable tension,-an arrangement which held the tripping mechanism locked with a force of such magnitude that it frequently failed to trip under the influence of a slight electrical or other type of impulse. With the arrangement hereinabove described, however, it is apparent that although the rod 36 is moved upwardly under the inuence of spring 3| when in a position to exert its greatest force, said spring when in the position shown in Figure 4 is capable only oi exerting a very slight holding effect, so that a slight electrical impulse will cause a retraction of latch I5 and an operative release of the mechanism.

In Figure 6 is shown one possible arrangement of the electrical connections wherein the oscillator I4 is shown forming part of the electrical circuit. The conductor 55 from the main source of current supply is electrically connected to the tripping lever I8, the circuit continuing through latch I5, through the oscillator |`4 to the conductor 56. The switches 51 arranged in multiple, and the switch 58, are operatively associated between conductor 56 and conductor 59. The switch 58 may be manually controlled, and the switches 51 may be operatively associated with any known automatic switch-closing mechanism which n'eed not herein be described. Should any of these switches be closed, it is apparent that the circuit between conductors 5-5 and 59 will be closed, causing a retraction of the latch I5 and operative movement of main lever IIJ as above described. And it should further be observed that with this arrangement not only is the lever I0 operatively tripped, but the disconnection between latch I5 and lever I8 causes an opening of the circuit.

It is of course understood that the embodiment above described and shown in the drawing is illustrative of my invention and not employed by way of limitation, inasmuch as numerous changes and modications may be made within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of this invention.

What I claim is:

l. In a release device, a pivotally mounted lever, retractible latch means holding said lever in la predetermined locked posit-ion, yieldable "means urging said` lever away from Lsaid locked position Y'against -the holdng action of said latch irneans, and vmeans l'to' operatively *retract said latch means whereby the lever will-be rotatably "actuated by -said yieldable means about the 'leverfs pivot, said yieldable'meansbein'giso dis- -posedas lto exert its minimumturning' eiortfon -the71ever 'when in'its said locked position. l 2.`In -a -release device, Aa pivotally mounted lever, retractible latch lmeans Ifrictio'nally Aholding vsaid lever in -a predeterminedlocked position, -yieldable means `urging said lever away from said locked position against the holding Haction of said latch means, andmeans'tooper- *atively retract said latch 'means whereby the lever will be rotatably'actuated by said iyieldable -means'about the levers pivot, said yield- "able means being so disposed as to exert a progressively increasing turning veffort on the 'lever beyond said lockingposition. 3. In a release "device, a pivotally mounted lever, a latch member 'attachedto 'the lever, a yholding member frictionally engaging said latch 'member `and thereby holding ksaid lever in a predetermined locked position, ,yieldablemeans urging said lever away from 'said locked position against the action 'of said 'holdingmember, means to operatively disengage said holding and latch members whereby the lever `will be rotatably actuated by said yieldable means about the levers pivot, said yieldable means including a movable spring operatively associated with the lever, said spring being so disposed when the lever is in its said locked position as to exert its minimum turning effort on the lever.

4. In a release device, a pivotally mounted main lever, retractible latch means holding said lever in a predetermined locked position, a pivotally mounted actuating lever engageable with said main lever for moving it away from said locked position, a movable spring attached to and movable with said actuating lever and yieldably urging it into operative engagement with the main lever against the action of said latch means, and mean-s to operatively retract said latch means whereby the main lever will be rotatably actuated by said actuating lever, said spring extending in the general direction of said actuating lever but not parallel thereto when in its inoperative position with the main lever in its said locked position, whereby a yieldable effort will be exerted on the main lever when it is in its said locked position, the spring being so disposed that its angle with the actuating lever progressively increases during its operative movement away from said inoperative position.

5. In a release device, a pivotally mounted main lever, retractible latch means holding said lever in a predetermined locked position, a pivotally mounted actuating lever having an intermediate portion thereof engageable with said main lever for moving it away from said locked position. a movable spring attached to and movable with one end of said actuating lever and yieldably urging said intermediate portion into operative engagement with the main lever against the action of said latch means, and means to operatively retract said latch means whereby the main lever will be operatively moved by said actuating lever, said spring extending in the general direction of said actuating lever but forming a relatively small angle therewith when in its inoperative position with the main lever in its said locked position, whereby a yieldlable -elort of relatively slight i magnitude fwill be exertedy on f the main lever when it `is lin its -'said locked position, the springbeingso disposedlthat its angle 'with the actuating llever progressively lincreases "during itsoperative vmovement, away ffrorn said inoperative position.

6. In a release device, a pivotally mounted main'lever, retractible latch means holdingfs'aid 4lever Tin a predetenminled locked --positionr an actuating lever pivotally -mounted at one end `-thereof and substantially parallel to the main lever when'in its v.inoperative position, said actuating lever 'having an intermediate portion en- Lga'geable -with said-main lever for Amoving Yit away firomsaid lockedposition, Ia'spring attached fto `andmovablewith the free-end of saidactuating 'leverfand yieldablyurging said intermediate -poriin its said inoperative position, Vwhereby a yield- Yableerfort of relatively slight lmagnitude will'be exerted onthe main'lever when it is in its said locked -position, fthe spring being so dispo-sedthat Yits, angle with the actuating lever 'progressively 4increases during its 'operative movement away from said inoperative position.

7. In a release device, a main lever pivotally mounted in the region of one end thereof, retractible latch means in spaced relation to the pivotal mounting of the said lever and releasably holding said lever in a predetermined locked position, an actuating lever pivotally mounted at one end thereof and substantially parallel to the main lever when in its inoperative position, said actuating lever having an intermediate portion engageable with said main lever at a point between *the pivotal mounting for the main lever and the said latch means for moving it away from said locked position, a spring attached to and movable with the free end of said actuating lever and yieldably urging said intermediate portion into operative engagement with the main lever against the action of said latch means, and means to operatively retractV said latch means whereby the main lever will be operatively moved by said actuating lever, said spring extending in the general direction .of said actuating lever but forming a relatively small angle therewith when in its said inoperative position, whereby a yieldable effort of relatively slight magnitude will be exerted on the main lever when it is in its said locked position, the spring being so `disposed that its angle with the actuating lever progressively increases during its operative movement away from said inoperative position.

8. In a release device, a main lever pivotally mounted at the rear thereof, retractible latch means in spaced relation to the pivotal mounting of the said lever and releasab-ly holding said lever in a predetermined locked position, an actuating lever having one end pivotally mounted forwardly of the pivotal mounting for the main lever and substantially parallel to the main lever when in its inoperative position, said actuating lever having an intermediate portion engageable with said main lever at a point between the pivotal mounting for the main lever and the said lat-ch means for moving it away from said locked position, a movable spring extending from a point behind the pivotal mounting for the actuating lever forwardly in the general direction of the `actuating lever for attachment to the front end thereof for urging said intermediate portion into operative engagement with the main lever against the action of said latch means, said spring forming a relatively small angle with the actuating lever when in its said inoperative position, whereby a yieldable effort of relatively slight magnitude will be exerted on the main lever when it is in its said locked position.

9. In a release device, a main lever, a pivotal mounting at the rear thereof, a treadle portion at the front thereof, a latch member on the lever adjacent the treadle portion, a. holding member frictionally engaging said latch member and thereby holding said lever in a predetermined locked and depressed position, an actuating lever having one end pivotally mounted forwardly of the pivotal mounting for the main lever and substantially parallel thereto when in its inoperative position, said actuating lever having an intermediate portion engageable with said main lever at an intermediate portion rearwardly of said latch member, a movable spring extending from a point behind the pivotal mounting for the actuating lever forwardly in the general direction of the actuating lever, said spring being attached to the front end of the actuating lever for urging the said intermediate portion thereof into operative engagement with the main lever against the frictional action of said holding member, said spring forming a relatively small angle with the actuating lever when in its said inoperative position, whereby a yieldable effort of relatively slight magnitude will be exerted on the main lever when it is in its said locked position.

10. In a release lever, the combination according to claim 9, the holding member comprising a pivotally mounted tripping lever containing a terminal lip in overhanging engagement with said latch member, yieldable means to normally hold said tripping lever in engaging position with said latch member, and means to retract said tripping lever from its holding position.

11. In a release device, va .pivotally mounted lever, a latch member attached to the lever, a holding member frictionally engaging said latch member and thereby holding said lever in a. predetermined locked position, electro-magnetic retracting means operatively connected to said latch member for releasing it from its engagement with said holding member, an electric circuit associated with said electro-mechanical means, said latch and holding members being part of said circuit, and yieldable means urging saidlever away from said locked position against the action of said holding member, said yieldable means being so disposed as to exert its minimum effort on the lever when in its said locked position.

CHARLES MEYER. 

